FIFA expands 2026 WC again to create 104-game program
KIGALI, Rwanda, March 14, (AP): The expanded World Cup in North America got even more supersized on Tuesday.
The governing body of soccer increased the size of the 2026 tournament for the second time - six years after the first - by approving a bigger group stage for the inaugural 48-team event.
By retaining groups of four teams instead of moving to three, FIFA has created a 104-game schedule that will last nearly six weeks in June-July in the United States, Canada and Mexico.
The 16 host cities - 11 in the United States, three in Mexico and two in Canada - now have 24 extra games to stage on top of the 80 they already had
SOCCER
for the inaugural 48-team tournament.
Adding about 1.5 million more tickets will also further fuel FIFA’s expected record revenue of at least $11 billion through 2026 from a tournament that will rely on using high-revenue NFL stadiums. FIFA said the decision followed a “thorough review that considered sporting integrity, player welfare, team travel, commercial and sporting attractiveness, as well as team and fan experience.”
The latest push by FIFA president Gianni Infantino for more games and bigger events in a congested calendar will likely provoke more concern among stakeholders such as domestic leagues and players’ union FIFPRO. They have long felt isolated from talks on soccer’s future.
The six-week World Cup will start one year after FIFA launches a 32-team Club World Cup, which could also be staged in North America to test tournament logistics. The Champions League in Europe also has a new format with more teams and games in the 2024-25 season.
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The U.S. men’s soccer team will play Mexico in an exhibition on April 19 at Glendale, Arizona.
The match announced Tuesday is not on a FIFA fixture date, meaning many if not all Europe-based players will not be available, a group that includes most starters from last year’s World Cup roster. The U.S., with its full player pool available, has CONCACAF Nations League matches at Grenada on March 24 and against El Salvador three days later at Orlando, Florida.
Mexico is at Suriname on March 23 and home against Jamaica three days later.
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Alejandro Zendejas says he is committing to the U.S. national team over Mexico.
The 25-year-old forward made his U.S. debut in a Jan. 25 exhibition against Serbia but remained eligible to ask FIFA for a one-time switch of affiliation to Mexico.
Zendejas started three matches for the U.S. at the 2015 Under-17 World Cup, where he was a teammate of Christian Pulisic and Tyler Adams, then played for Mexico in friendlies against Ecuador in October 2021 and Guatemala last April plus three under23 matches for El Tri.